Lisa Demuth

Lisa Demuth ( ; , born February 10, 1967) is an American politician serving since 2025 as the speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, Demuth represents District 13A in central Minnesota, which includes the cities of St. Joseph and Cold Spring and parts of Stearns County. She has served since 2023 as leader of the House Republican caucus and from 2023 to 2025 as the minority leader of the Minnesota House of Representatives. She was elected to the role on February 6, becoming the first Black person to become speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives.

On August 11, 2026, Demuth won the Republican nomination for governor of Minnesota. If elected, she would be the first African-American and first female governor of Minnesota, as well as the first African-American female governor of any U.S. state in history.

Early life, education, and career Demuth was born Lisa Marie Pittman in Paynesville, Minnesota. She graduated from Bloomington Kennedy High School. Demuth is biracial: her father is Black, and her mother is white. Demuth experienced racism during her childhood.

Demuth co-owns and manages commercial property with her husband, Nick. She was elected to the Rocori school board as a write-in candidate in 2007 and was reelected twice.

Minnesota House of Representatives Demuth was first elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2018. She was recruited to run by the former representative for 13A, Jeff Howe, who was stepping down to run for the Minnesota Senate. During the 2021-22 legislative session, Demuth served as an assistant minority leader in the House.

After the 2022 Minnesota House of Representatives Election saw Republicans fail to flip the House from Democratic control, the Republican caucus elected Demuth minority leader. She has portrayed herself as more collaborative and calmer than her predecessor, Kurt Daudt. According to the American Conservative Union's scorecard, Demuth was ranked as less conservative than the average Republican legislator.

2025 speaker dispute

In the opening session of the 94th Minnesota Legislature on January 14, 2025, only the 67 elected House Republicans attended. The 66 elected DFL members were absent in an effort to prevent a quorum. Secretary of State Steve Simon presided over the chamber and left, ruling that there was no quorum. Republican members proceeded to elect Demuth as Speaker of the House and continued with normal legislative business for two weeks with Demuth presiding. On January 24, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that because of the absence of a quorum, Demuth's election and all action that followed were invalid. On February 5, 2025, the two parties reached an agreement to end the DFL boycott of the legislative session that included making Demuth speaker. Demuth's campaign gained attention for its PAC's acceptance of $1.1 million in donations from billionaire Richard Uihlein, who owns the shipping business Uline.

Political positions Administration During her 2026 gubernatorial campaign, Demuth advocated the creation of a nonpartisan "Office of Inspector General", which would investigate fraud in Minnesota government agencies. This was a response to the 2020s Minnesota fraud scandals. , this office has been created by the Tim Walz administration.

In the 2026 Minnesota Public Radio voter guide, Demuth said Minnesota had endured "16 years of failed Democrat leadership in the executive branch".

Economy Demuth has expressed interest in growing Iron Range mining operations and reducing permitting timelines. In 2025, she sponsored a state bill that would have created an Education Savings Account (ESA) program that allowed eligible students from low-income households to receive state funding for educational expenses. She opposes "woke gender and racial ideology" in schools, and wants to raise Minnesota's reading proficiency rates.

Taxation and social welfare Demuth wants to reduce income tax for low-income tax brackets, decrease car tab fees, and end taxes on social security.

Voting rights Demuth is a proponent of voter identification laws.

Personal life Demuth married Nick Demuth in 1991. They reside in Cold Spring, Minnesota, and have four children.